Virtue Beads

So I had these extra beads left over from creating those COoR, (or as I also use them, Core Order of Meditation) and those COoR beads worked so well helping me keep the order of our liturgy that I thought to do the same with our Nine Virtues.

I wanted this to be something I carried with me everywhere, to remind to strive for the best, be the best I can be by following the virtues. What do I take everywhere with me? Keys and purse.

So…the charms I chose:

I had typed out “The Druid’s Pledge” by Rev Jessie “Medb” Olson. I gave thought to what could represent each virtue to me as a charm.

To Wisdom I gave a feather, for knowledge and intelligence to me is books, but the feather or feathered quill means applied knowledge, and for me Wisdom is applying knowledge with a good moral compass.

To Vision I gave the hand with a magical spiral for prediction and forsight

To Piety I gave the Tree

To Courage, I gave the Lion, thinking of how the Cowardly Lion found his courage in Oz

To Integrity, I thought to find a bow/arrow charm, to be true, speak truth, straight and true as an arrow. I could not find one of those charms, but something else worked better. There is a spirit that has presented himself to me as a red dragon since I was 7. I have no idea if he just takes that shape for some reason to help me understand or if he is what he really shows himself to be. Regardless, as a child learning integrity, whenever I’d faulter he was the one bopping me in the back of the head and shaking a claw at my guilt. So, that charm is him, shaking his claw at me to remember integrity.

For Perserverance, I chose a goat. I’m a Capricorn, I’m stubborn about not giving up, and it is my personality’s naturally strongest virtue. If I make up my mind to climb a mountain, dammit this goat is going to climb that mountain.

For Hospitality I gave a tea-pot. What can be cozier?

For Moderation I gave chalice, I love my wine, nectar of the Gods, but moderation is important.

For Fertility, I gave grapes, the fruit of which the God’s Nectar is grown from.

Then I had to decide how I would put them together. Well, keychain was first to come to mind, a fob of some sort. So I started to macrame. At first I thought to finish it off with a large bead, and leave it a dangling fob. And I suppose that would have been fine but I have a thing for circles and I’d decided instead of it getting banged up on my keychain, I’d rather use it as a decorative reminder of the Virtues to attach to my purse.

The final picture is the final product, hanging on my purse, an everyday reminder of the Virtues I have pledged to keep to the best of my abilities.